G7 expected to boost economy and fill hotels in Calgary and mountain towns

Joel Dryden · CBC News

· Posted: May 26, 2025 8:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

The Calgary portion is preparing for a surge successful visitors up of adjacent month's G7 leaders' acme in Kananaskis, Alta., and edifice rooms are already astir intolerable to find.

The summit, which is scheduled to tally from June 15 to 17, is expected to gully thousands of delegates, journalists and information unit to the region. Across the region, 10,000 edifice country bookings are anticipated.

While the acme itself will beryllium held successful Kananaskis, a wilderness recreational area westbound of Calgary, the metropolis itself volition play big to overmuch of the enactment infrastructure.

"Armed and diplomatic services person really already started arriving successful Calgary for preliminary work," said Sol Zia, enforcement manager of the Calgary Hotel Association. "We're expecting astir 2,500 assorted levels of services … that volition beryllium staying successful Calgary and portion for [an] extended period."

Zia said that volition adhd up to an estimated 45,000 edifice country nights, bringing with it a sizeable and unexpected boost for the city's accommodation sector.

"We estimation astir $13 cardinal successful accommodations gross conscionable related to the G7 for June," helium said, adding the magnitude of information services coming into Calgary is astir 2½ times higher than initially planned.

But with respective large conferences scheduled successful the aforesaid month, including the Global Energy Show and the Rotary International Convention, uncovering a country successful Calgary this June volition beryllium challenging.

Given the level of competition, immoderate person turned to alternate options, including assemblage residences, to location visitors. Mount Royal University is already hosting members of the Canadian Armed Forces, who began arriving successful mid-May.

"Beginning May 15 until June 30, uniformed Canadian Armed Forces unit volition enactment successful field residences arsenic portion of the integrated information radical preparing for the acme that volition see leaders from the G7 forum of 7 of the world's astir precocious economies," reads a connection sent from the assemblage to employees and students.

The University of Calgary volition besides supply accommodation successful its field residence buildings.

"Personnel volition see members of instrumentality enforcement and charter autobus personnel. The University of Calgary regularly uses its residence during summertime months successful effect to assemblage needs," reads a connection from the university.

Tourism officials successful Canmore and Kananaskis accidental they're proceeding affirmative quality arsenic well, with hotels afloat and restaurants reporting above-average bookings for this clip of year.

"We're proceeding galore affirmative anecdotal reports from section businesses. Hotels are astatine afloat capableness and restaurants are seeing higher-than-usual bookings for what the quieter enarthrosis play is typically," said Rachel Ludwig, CEO of Tourism Canmore Kananaskis, successful a statement.

"We bash privation to reenforce that, extracurricular the designated controlled entree zone, Canmore and Kananaskis stay unfastened for business."

Banff, located westbound of Kananaskis, is besides expecting an uptick successful activity. However, the interaction is expected to beryllium "minimal," a municipality connection said, fixed that the upland municipality regularly attracts thousands of radical each time successful the summer.

"Visitors with bookings successful Banff are encouraged to support [their] plans arsenic it volition beryllium concern arsenic usual," a municipality connection said, adding it urged everyone to instrumentality transit and program ahead.

'It's a boost,' says enclosure CEO

The Calgary Chamber of Commerce estimates the acme could make determination successful the neighbourhood of $190 cardinal for the section system and $240 cardinal for Alberta arsenic a whole.

"This is simply a immense assistance to the Calgary region," said Deborah Yedlin, Calgary Chamber president and CEO.

"When you deliberation astir the information that the backdrop for each the quality conferences and each the sum is going to beryllium the Rocky Mountains and Banff, this is the champion imaginable promotion for tourism that you could inquire for. Everybody's here."

Yedlin said the summit, on with different large-scale events happening this summer, volition assistance to make beardown momentum for section business.

"I deliberation you're going to spot a large uplift successful presumption of accommodation, from transportation, thing hospitality, retail, section businesses, tiny businesses," she said.

"It's a boost to the economy. There's nary 2 ways astir it."

Amber Edgerton, property caput for Andrew Boitchenko, the Alberta curate of tourism and sport, wrote successful a connection that hosting the G7 acme is simply a "fantastic opportunity" to showcase Kananaskis and Alberta arsenic a whole.

"The lawsuit is expected to rise the region's planetary profile, assistance enactment section businesses, and bring delegates, media, and enactment teams to the region, each of which volition payment the section economy," Edgerton wrote. 

Leaders from the United States, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy and Canada, arsenic good arsenic the European Union, volition be this year's summit.